Safety device for electrical window regulators

ABSTRACT

A safety device for a motor-operated window regulator used for raising and lowering the window of a vehicle including an elongated sheath which is elastically deformable located outside the plane of the window for detecting the presence of an obstacle hindering the closure of the window. Electric conductors are positioned within such sheath and such conductors are slightly separated and adapted to contact each other upon a light deformation of the sheath by such obstacle. A device is responsive to the contact of the conductors for reversing the operation of the motor thereby preventing any risk of accidental closure of the window.

United States Patent Boyriven 1 May 16, 1972 154] SAFETY DEVICE FOR ELECTRICAL WINDOW REGULATORS [72] Inventor:

[73] Assignee:

Paul Boyriven, Paris, France Compagnie lndustrielle de Mecanismes, Courbevoie, France [22] Filed: Jan. 8, 1970 [21] Appl No.: 1,463

[5 6] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Hynes et a1. ..49/27 X Greegor et a1. ..49/27 X 2,832,588 4/1958 Newkirk ..49/27 2,881,378 4/1959 Russe1l.....

2,911,212 11/1959 Forster....

3,303,303 2/1967 Miller 3,465,476 9/ 1969 Rayner et al 49/28 OTHER PUBLICATIONS IBM Technical Disclosure Bulletin Vol. 1 1 No. 7 Dec 1968 Primary ExaminerDennis L. Taylor Attorney-Raymond A. Robic ABSTRACT A safety device for a motor-operated window regulator used for raising and lowering the window of a vehicle including an elongated sheath which is elastically deformable located outside the plane of the window for detecting the presence of an obstacle hindering the closure of the window. Electric conductors are positioned within such sheath and such conductors are slightly separated and adapted to contact each other upon a light deformation of the sheath by such obstacle. A device is responsive to the contact of the conductors for reversing the operation of the motor thereby preventing any risk of accidental closure of the window.

3 Claims, 11 Drawing Figures PATENTEDMY 16 I972 SHEET 1 BF 2 mwm rol? 2 Paul BOXR/VHV wrap/va Fig.8.

Fig.4

SAFETY DEVICE FOR ELECTRICAL WINDOW REGULATORS This invention relates to a safety device for a motoroperated window regulator used for raising or lowering the window of a vehicle.

The progressive development of electric window regulators for raising or lowering the windows of motor vehicles has revealed a difficulty hindering the general use of such devices, which difficulty is caused by the fact that the arm or the head of any child may be caught by the closure of the window.

The object of the present invention is to obviate the abovementioned difficulty.

Such result is obtained, in accordance with the invention, by the novel combination of a known electrical window regulator with an auxiliary device arranged to detect any wedging or any squeezing of an obstacle hindering the closure of the window. Such auxiliary device acts as a switch through suitable conductors for a quick-brake and timed reversing relay, so as to invert the direction of rotation of the electric motor operating the window regulator as soon as there is an accidental squeezing of an obstacle between the top of the window and the upper crosspiece of the door, or the top of the vehicle if that is the case.

The above novel characteristics of the invention as well as other characteristics and advantages will be better understood with reference to the following description and to the accompanying drawings, given by way of example and illustrating two embodiments of the invention in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates an over-all view of the door of a vehicle including an electrical window regulator and a safety device in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 2 illustrates a perspective view along line A--A of the upper slide of the window and of the crosspiece of the door and comprising, in addition, a safety device in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 3 illustrates a perspective view, similar to FIG. 2, but comprising an alternative embodiment of a safety device;

FIG. 4 illustrates a longitudinal section view of the cap of the safety device of FIG. 3 acting as a pressure switch;

FIG. 5 illustrates an over-all perspective view of a timed current reversing relay in accordance with the invention;

F IG. 6 illustrates a schematic section view of the relay illustrated in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 illustrates a plan view of the double-pole switch causing the reversal of the flow of the current through the relay of FIGS. 5 and 6;

FIG. 8 illustrates a plan section view of the same relay showing the switch with some of its spring contacts;

FIG. 9 illustrates the circuit diagram of the electric motor of the window regulator and of the automatic control devices in the position ensuring the raising of the window;

FIG. 10 illustrates the same circuit diagram but in the position of the switch ensuring the lowering of the window; and

FIG. 1 1 illustrates the same circuit but in accordance with a diagram ensuring the closure of the circuit of the timed double-pole reversing relay due to the closure of the contacts of the pressure detector, so as to produce the automatic opening of the window when an obstacle is encountered during the closure thereof.

In FIG. 1, there is illustrated a perspective over-all view of the rear door of a motor vehicle equipped with a known window regulator 1 arranged for being operated by an electric motor 2 through a flexible cable 3 and normally controlled by a double-pole switch 4. The window regulator may advantageously be of the type disclosed in Canadian application Ser. No. 045,402 filed Mar. 1 l, 1969 by the same applicant as the present invention.

In accordance with FIGS. 1 and 2, the crosspiece 5 of the door, including the window slide 6 is combined with a safety device 7 which is secured to the door by means of strip 8. The safety device 7 may be advantageously extruded or wound in a material which is elastic or at least deformable such as, for example, a natural or synthetic elastomer, in such a way as to hold with a slight spacing therebetween, provided by two lateral projections, two electrically conductive strips 9 and 10 which are also flexible, such strips being capable of contacting each other when the safety member 7 is collapsed or at least subjected to a vertical squeezing action.

In the alternative embodiment of FIGS. 3 and 4, the same interrupting action, by closure of contacts 11 and 12, is accomplished by the head of a sliding piston 13 which is biased by spring 14 and closes the end of an elastically deformable tube 15 which is contained in an elongated sheath l6 equally deformable, so that, when the elongated sheath and tube 15 is collapsed, the pressure of the air or of any gas confined therein is increased and displaces piston 13 until the head of the piston, which is electrically conductive, bridges the contacts 11 and 12.

In FIGS. 5 to 8, there is illustrated a quick-break and timed double-pole reversing relay 17, such relay cooperating with a conventional double-pole reversing switch 4. Such reversing relay consists of a central body 18 in which slides a rod 19 causing the tilting of a rocking member 20 of the type used in the tumbler switches to ensure, in a known manner, the quickbreak or make of contacts located on flexible blades, such as 21, which are arranged, in a known manner, to effect the reversal of the direction of flow of electric current.

The tilting of the rocking member 20, which comprises elbowed ends forming flexible blades 22 which may be advantageously assembled by means of insulating rivets 23 made of, for example, perpolyamide, is ensured by the sliding of rod 19 acting as a piston and capable of being moved toward the center of a solenoid 24 when such solenoid is energized. The rod 19 is adapted to fall to a rest position under the biasing of spring 25 with a time delay determined by the air confined between the piston 26 and the cylinder 27 in which such piston moves, such air being permitted to escape slowly through an outlet 28.

The operation of the assembly so far disclosed may be easily understood from a comparison of the schematic circuit diagram of FIG. 9 which illustrates, in a conventional manner, the raising of the window with the one of FIG. 10 which illustrates the lowering of the window, and in which the reversing switch 17 does not come into action. It may be clearly seen, that apart from the conventional limit switches which are not illustrated, the reversal of the direction of rotation of motor 2 (which may be of the pole inversion type and of the type having ferrite inductors) and consequently the reversal of the operation of the window, results from the simple reversal of the leads by the conventional reversing switch 4.

Indeed, it is then easy to understand that, in accordance with FIG. 11, the same reversal of the leads of motor 2 may be realized by the double-pole reversing switch 17 which is also positioned in the circuit diagram. It is only necessary that such switch be remote controlled by an auxiliary circuit 29 energizing solenoid 24. Such auxiliary circuit is closed by contacts 9 and 10 or 11 and 12 of a pressure detector in accordance with the invention to ensure the automatic and instantaneous reversal of the direction of rotation of motor 2 and hence of the window regulator 1 as soon as an obstacle is squeezed between the top edge of the window and the upper crosspiece of the door.

Indeed, the reversing of the operation and lowering of the window which results therefrom will last during a time interval determined by the pneumatic time delay device disclosed above. The closure of the window will subsequently be resumed because timed relay 17, in the rest position, is built to ensure the raising of the window when reversing switch 4 is itself in the raising position of the window.

Finally, it is obvious that the invention is not limited to the novel use of the means or processes disclosed above by way of example, or to the particular combination of means or processes disclosed to perform the invention, but, on the contrary, that the field of the invention covers all the alternative means or processes to produce the novel industrial products in accordance with the invention, or a portion only of such products or safety devices for electrical window regulators.

By way of example, hydraulic or electro-thermal means equivalent to the pneumatic timing means could be used.

I claim:

l. A safety device for a motor operated window regulator used for raising or lowering the windows of a vehicle comprismg:

a. a sheath which is elastically deformable located outside the plane of said window for detecting the presence of an obstacle during the closure of said window;

b. continuous electric conductors positioned within said sheath and extending the entire length thereof, said electric conductors being slightly separated and adapted to contact each other upon a slight defon'nation of said sheath by said obstacle; and

c. a relay adapted for connection to a power source through said electric conductors when an obstacle is detected during raising of the window, said relay having double-pole contacts located in the energizing circuit of the motor and adapted to reverse the operation of the motor so as to cause lowering of the window and prevent any risk of accidental squeezing of the obstacle.

2. A safety device as defined in claim 1, further comprising a timing device for maintaining the relay energized for a predetermined time interval.

3. A safety device as defined in claim 2, wherein said timing device is a pneumatic device.

* F I I. 

1. A safety device for a motor operated window regulator used for raising or lowering the windows of a vehicle comprising: a. a sheath which is elastically deformable located outside the plane of said window for detecting the presence of an obstacle during the closure of said window; b. continuous electric conductors positioned within said sheath and extending the entire length thereof, said electric conductors being slightly separated and adapted to contact each other upon a slight deformation of said sheath by said obstacle; and c. a relay adapted for connection to a power source through said electric conductors when an obstacle is detected during raising of the window, said relay having double-pole contacts located in the energizing circuit of the motor and adapted to reverse the operation of the motor so as to cause lowering of the window and prevent any risk of accidental squeezing of the obstacle.
 2. A safety device as defined in claim 1, further comprising a timing device for maintaining the relay energized for a predetermined time interval.
 3. A safety device as defined in claim 2, wherein said timing device is a pneumatic device. 